Prepared by: David J. Birnbaum (djbpitt+tales@pitt.edu)
Last modified: 2004-09-06
Location: http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/05-1/description.html
Course Web Page: http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/
| Section | CRN | Date and Time | Room | Instructor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 15631 | MW 1:00-1:50 | CLAPP L9 | Birnbaum |
| Recitation | 22755 | H 9:00-9:50 | CL 139 | Birnbaum |
| Recitation | 22715 | H 10:00-10:50 | CL 139 | Jimerson |
| Recitation | 22721 | H 11:00-11:50 | CL 139 | Post |
| Recitation | 22726 | H 12:00-12:50 | CL 139 | Post |
| Recitation | 25522 | H 12:00-12:50 | CL 149 | Konsko |
| Recitation | 25519 | H 1:00-1:50 | CL 149 | Marquette |
| Recitation | 25530 | H 2:00-2:50 | CL 149 | Jimerson |
| Recitation | 25527 | H 3:00-3:50 | CL 149 | Post |
| Recitation | 22747 | H 4:00-4:50 | CL 149 | Fraser |
| Recitation | 22734 | F 9:00-9:50 | WWPH 5130 | Marquette |
| Recitation | 22742 | F 10:00-10:50 | WWPH 5130 | Cancelled; go to CL 204 |
| Recitation | 22739 | F 10:00-10:50 | CL 204 | Post |
| Recitation | 22750 | F 11:00-11:50 | CL 204 | Marquette |
| Recitation | 25514 | F 12:00-12:50 | CL 204 | Marquette |
All students are required to enroll in lecture and in one recitation section. To ensure that all students have an opportunity to participate in recitation, recitation-hopping is not permitted; you must attend the recitation section in which you are enrolled.
David J. Birnbaum
Email:
djbpitt+tales@pitt.edu
Office: 1417 CL
Phone: 412-624-5712
Office Hours:
M 2:00-2:50, W 11:00-11:50, and by appointment
Tom Fraser
Email: tmfraser81@yahoo.com
Office: 1417 CL
Phone: (none)
Office Hours: M 4:00-4:50, W 12:00-12:50, and by appointment
Leah Jimerson
Email:
leahj15@comcast.net
Office:
1417 CL
Phone: (none)
Office Hours: H 1:00-1:50, H
3:00-3:50, and by appointment
Lindsay Konsko
Email: lmk19+@pitt.edu
Office: 1417 CL
Phone: (none)
Office Hours: M 3:00-3:50, F1:00-1:50, and
by appointment
Carrie Marquette
Email:
careanne15@yahoo.com
Office: 1417 CL
Phone: (none)
Office Hours: M
11:00-12:50 and by appointment
Alton Post
Email:
alton.hickerson@verizon.net
Office: 1409 CL
Phone: 412-247-9477 (home);
412-624-5909 (office)
Office Hours: F 11:00-12:50, and by
appointment
Folk beliefs are a rich and enduring component of Russian culture. This course introduces the student to a wide selection of Russian fairy tales, and examines the aesthetic, social, and psychological values that they reflect. Students will develop or enhance their understanding of the continuing cultural influence of fairy tales and folk beliefs in literature, in orchestral music, opera, and ballet, in painting, posters, and folk art, and in film. The course also provides a general introduction to the study of folklore and fairy tales, presenting a broad spectrum of approaches to the interpretation of fairy tales, including psychoanalysis, sociology, structuralism, and feminism. For both contextual and critical reasons, the course introduces and analyzes Russian fairy tales against a background of and in comparison with the Western fairy tale tradition (the Grimms, Perrault, Disney, etc.).
Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to discuss several approaches to the study of fairy tales, especially as they apply to the body of texts contained in Afanas'ev's Russian Fairy Tales. In particular, students will be able to:
Most students who complete this course agree that by the end of the semester they are able to approach fairy tales very differently from the way they dealt with them previously.
This course carries three credits and satisfies the CAS requirement in International Foreign Culture (Non-Western). All participants are required to enroll in lecture and in one recitation section. There are no prerequisites; in particular, no knowledge of Russian language is required.
Reading assignments are a principal source of information for this course. In order to derive full benefit from class meetings (and also to perform well in recitation and on unannounced quizzes), it is important to complete assignments by the indicated days.
In addition to readings, students are also responsible for any material presented in class. Lecture meetings will involve the introduction of new information, analysis of assigned readings, and the presentation of visual and audio materials (slides, video clips, and audio recordings). Students who are absent from a lecture meeting should find out from their classmates about information or materials they may have missed.
The lecture/recitation format of this course course reflects the notion that education should involve "active learning," in which students do more than just memorize and regurgitate what their instructors or textbooks tell them. For example, your instructors may analyze a fairy tale for you from a particular theoretical perspective as a way of illustrating how the theory works, but you actually learn the theory not from reading about it or listening to our analysis, but from applying it yourself. In other words, you learn most by doing, and what you read and what we tell you is intended primarily to prepare you to do your own thinking.
Recitation sections are designed to facilitate this type of original student participation. Unlike in many courses, recitation is not a review of lecture, but an opportunity for students to work originally and critically with course materials. Participating actively in recitation will improve your grade, and will also help you learn more and find class more interesting and more satisfying.
Your instructors will often use PowerPoint slides to highlight key points during lecture, and we will post those slides on the course web site (http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/). Whenever possible, we will try to make the slides available on the web site by early morning on the day of the lecture, so that you can print them out, bring them to class, and take notes directly on the printout, although at times last-minute changes may make this impossible. The PowerPoint slides are deliberately designed to be outlines, rather than detailed summaries of the lecture; they can help you follow the lecture, organize your own notes, and review for quizzes and examinations, but they are not a substitute for attending lecture and taking notes yourself. Information about printing PowerPoint slides so that you can bring them to lecture for note-taking is available at http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/powerpoint.html.
Some course materials are distributed exclusively on the World Wide Web, where they will be linked under the main course web page (http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/) or the syllabus (http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/05-1/syllabus.html). Students are required to learn to use a Web browser in order to access these materials, and the appropriate training can be provided by the attendants in any CSSD computing lab.
You will be required to:
Your course grade will be determined initially by your performance on exams and quizzes and in recitation, as follows:
| Component | Max Points |
|---|---|
| Total of all three exams | 159 |
| Total of best four quizzes | 40 |
| Recitation Participation | 40 |
| Maximum possible score | 239 |
Your total will be reduced by one point for each absence from lecture on a day a quiz is given (see below for further discussion of attendance). The course includes an automatic five free points, which are intended to let you miss one entire week of class (two lectures when quizzes are given plus one recitation) without penalty. If you don't miss any classes, you still get the free points, which means that it is theoretically possible to obtain 244/239, or 101% of the available points. There is also an opportunity to earn up to fifteen additional points of extra credit (see below).
Point totals will be converted to percentages and then to letter grades, and a curve will be implemented where necessary. After a curve has been determined, individual grades may be raised based on extra-credit work, as described below (maximum additional fifteen points), so the highest possible total score including extra credit is 259/239 points (108% of the available points). The grading system is described in detail at http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/grading.html.
There will be three examinations, each consisting of twenty-five multiple-choice questions (one initial point each) and one one-page essay question (fifteen initial points), for a total of forty initial points for the examination. The initial points are then multiplied by 53/40, producing a range of 0-53 final points. You will be given three essay questions on each examination and you can choose the one you want to answer (please don't answer more than one; we will count only the first one numerically). (We convert from initial points to final points for weighting purposes, so that the three exams together will be worth roughly 2/3 of the course grade.)
Examinations are not cumulative by design, but may require cumulative knowledge. For example, a question on the last examination about a tale read toward the end of the semester may require you to apply an analytical method introduced in a theoretical reading toward the beginning of the semester. Alternatively, a question about a theoretical or methodological approach to fairy tales introduced toward the end of the semester may require you to compare this approach to one introduced earlier. Examinations will be given during lecture meetings and will take a full class period. There is no separate midterm or final examination. For sample examination questions, see http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/sample_questions.html.
Students who miss an examination because of an emergency may take a makeup examination. The first two makeup examinations will be given at 7:00 a.m. on the Fridays following the regular examination, and the third will be given at the time officially allocated for the course final examination (note that the course does not have a regular final examination). All makeup examination times are listed on the course syllabus, and all makeup examinations will be given in the Department of Slavic Languages (1417 CL), and not in either our regular classroom or the room regularly assigned by the University for a final examination. There are no alternative times and no secondary makeups; if you miss both the regular and the makeup examination, you cannot receive credit for that examination.
We do not require written excuses or prior notification for makeup examinations; if you miss a regular examination because of an emergency, you may just show up at the scheduled time and take the makeup. Unlike regular examinations, however, makeup examinations involve three long essays with no choice of questions, and although they are neither tricky nor unfair, they are much more difficult than regular examinations, they are graded more strictly, and it is extremely unlikely that you will do better on a makeup examination than on a regular examination, even with extra time to study. In other words, it is strongly in your interest not to miss a regular examination unless absolutely necessary.
Examinations are not returned to students, but you may obtain your score by authorizing us to post it on the course web site (by social security number) or privately by sending one of us an email inquiry. You are also welcome to meet with any of us during office hours or by appointment to review your answers.
At least four unannounced quizzes, each of which is worth ten points and should take approximately five minutes to complete, will be given during the semester at varying times during lecture meetings. Because we need to distribute and collect the quizzes quickly to avoid losing lecture time, you may take a quiz only if you are present when it is distributed, and we cannot give quizzes to students who arrive after we have distributed them (even if other students are still writing). Note also that missing a quiz counts as an absence, about which see below. In other words, you may miss a quiz (and lose a point for absence) if you arrive late or leave early on a quiz day, and not just if you don't come at all. If you are frequently late because your previous instructor does not let you leave on time, tell us and we will intervene; instructors do not have a right to make you late to your next class.
Quizzes may involve any combination of multiple-choice, true-false, mix-and-match, fill-in-the-blank, or other short-answer questions. Only your four highest quiz grades will be counted in your course grade, and all lower quiz grades will be dropped. There are no makeup quizzes; the fact that only the best four quizzes count toward the grade means that you can "make up" for a missed quiz by counting one of the others. For a sample quiz question, see http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/sample_questions.html.
Quizzes are not returned to students, but we will announce the answers in class immediately after collecting the quizzes, so that you can keep track of your own results. You are also welcome to meet with us during office hours or by appointment to review your answers.
As is described under Course Methodology, above, this course requires active participation in recitation sessions. There are fourteen recitation meetings during the semester, and students receive a letter grade at each meeting; these grades collectively amount to 1/6 of the final course grade.
For those interested in the mathematical details: Recitation grades are computed by averaging a student's performance for the sessions the student attended, converting from a letter grade to a hundred-point numerical scale, deducting 3.5 points for every absence, and then converting to a forty-point scale (so that recitation is ultimately worth up to forty final points). Each absence winds up reducing the recitation component of your grade by roughly one notch (e.g., A to A-, B+ to B, etc.) (but, as is noted above, each students receives five free final points, which is intended to allow for occasional unavoidable absence).
Because there are approximately twenty-five students per recitation and recitation meetings last fifty minutes, the opportunity for speaking is limited. Accordingly, contributions are evaluated on the basis of quality, rather than quantity (for example, it is possible—although difficult—to earn an A for the day with just one knock-your-socks-off contribution). You can improve your recitation grade by preparing carefully and participating seriously, thoughtfully, and intelligently.
Note that you can earn recitation credit not just by giving "right" answers, but also by asking good questions or by making intelligent comments even when they may happen to be "wrong." On the other hand, no credit is awarded for bluffing, and it is important to be prepared and thoughtful. If you are shy about raising your hand, tell your instructor, who will make a point of calling on you even when you do not have your hand raised. Some recitation sessions will incorporate discussion in small groups, and you will receive credit for participating actively in your group. Some recitation meetings will also include brief in-class "minute papers," and you will receive participation credit for your performance on these papers. Finally, you can receive recitation credit for the occasional homework assignments (listed on the syllabus) that are due in recitation.
You may take advantage of either of the following optional extra-credit assignments:
Note especially that:
doc or rtf format only) attached to an email message and sent to
djbpitt+tales.ec@pitt.edu (note
that this is a special address exclusively for submitting extra-credit
work).There are much more complete guidelines for writing extra-credit papers on the web at:
It is in your interest to consult these guidelines, which explain in detail how to write a successful tale or paper for this course.
Attendance is mandatory, and is figured into your grade in the following way:
There is no distinction between excused and unexcused absence because it isn't possible for us to determine fairly when an absence is unavoidable, understandable but not unavoidable, or frivolous. The free points have been introduced to allow a full week of absence without penalty, and you are encouraged to save those free absences in case of illness. Students who miss a significant amount of class because of hospitalization or other prolonged, unusual, and serious circumstances must discuss their situation with one of the instructors as early as possible. We will make reasonable accommodations for genuine emergencies, but if you miss a significant amount of class, we may ask you to take a G grade (a type of incomplete) and complete the course the following semester. This strategy is not punitive; it reflects the reality of your not having completed the course requirements, which include regular attendance at lecture and recitation.
Every semester a small number of students habitually arrive late to class, leave class early, talk in class, read newspapers in class, solve crossword puzzles in class, sleep in class, etc. We understand that students may find some materials less interesting than others (so do we!), that it is sometimes difficult to remain attentive during lecture, and that a large classroom is an alienating environment that creates the impression that whatever you do in your seat is invisible.
In fact, no matter how unobtrusive you may try to be, the non-participatory activities described above are distracting, disruptive, and inconsiderate to both instructors and other students. Furthermore, according to University policy, students do not have a right to engage in behavior that interferes with classroom activities. That is, paying tuition confers a right to participate constructively in a course, but not to engage in activities that are distracting, disruptive, or inconsiderate.
With this in mind, the following list outlines mutual responsibilities of instructors and students:
If you arrive late to lecture, enter as quietly as possible through the back doors and sit in the back of the classroom. If you know that you have to leave lecture early on a particular day, sit in the back of the classroom and leave as quietly as possible. Turn off your cell phones (don't just switch them to "vibrate") and put them away; cell phones should not be placed on desks. If you are an emergency medical technician or for some other reason may receive emergency telephone calls that you cannot ignore, sit in the back of the classroom, switch your phone to "vibrate," and leave the room as quickly and quietly as possible when you get a call.
By remaining enrolled in the course, students not only agree to abide by the above stipulations, but also understand that the instructors will follow rigorously the rules spelled out in the University's Academic Integrity Policies (Policy 02-03-03, http://www.pitt.edu/HOME/PP/policies/02/02-03-03.html) and Procedures (Procedure 02-03-03, http://www.pitt.edu/HOME/PP/procedures/02/02-03-03.html) regarding cheating, plagiarism, etc. It is the students' responsibility to familiarize themselves with these regulations and to observe them, and any infraction will be penalized according to these rules.
Students often commit academic integrity violations (such as plagiarism) through ignorance or inexperience. To prevent inadvertent plagiarism, your instructors have prepared a guide to avoiding plagiarism, which is available at http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/plagiarism.html. Even if you would never knowingly commit plagiarism, you should read this document. If you are uncertain about any matter concerning academic integrity, please ask your instructors.
Note that with one exception (see immediately below), the minimum sanction for violating the University's academic integrity guidelines is an F in the course. Not an F on the quiz or exam or paper, but an F for the course. The maximum sanction, as described in the documents mentioned above, is dismissal from the University without the possibility of readmission.
Exception: Students sometimes cheat impulsively on examinations or quizzes and then regret doing so immediately afterwards. If this happens to you and you turn yourself in before the instructors leave the room at the end of the session, we will assign you a zero for the examination or quiz and we will report the offense, as required, to the Dean's office, but we will not assign a failing grade for the course.
Students experiencing problems in this course should discuss those problems with any one of the instructors. We check our email regularly, and are available to discuss any aspect of the course or of general study habits.
If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an accommodation, you are required to contact both your instructor and Disability Resources and Services (DRS), 216 William Pitt Union, 412-648-7890 or 412-383-7355 (TTY) no later than Monday, September 13. DRS will verify your disability and determine reasonable accommodations for this course. No accommodations can be made without verification by DRS.
All required books (including the Course Pack) will be on two-hour reserve in Hillman Library.
The course syllabus is available at http://clover.slavic.pitt.edu/~tales/05-1/syllabus.html. The syllabus may be modified in minor ways during the semester, but assignments and examination dates will not be changed.